LOS ANGELES : Independent Probe of Fire Department Shelved

The work of an independent panel appointed to study affirmative action issues in the Los Angeles City Fire Department in the wake of a scathing city audit has been put on hold because concerns raised in the report already are being investigated, officials said Monday.

Since the audit was released last month, the City Council Personnel Committee and the Fire Commission have held several hearings on alleged discrimination in the department’s training and promotion practices and on its treatment of women and minorities. The department also has expanded an existing committee to adopt recommendations in the audit.

A sharply divided Fire Commission approved the panel Nov. 22 at the request of board President Elizabeth Lowe, who called for the action after being told by Fire Chief Donald O. Manning that the audit’s findings were inaccurate. Manning has put forth his own report containing data that he said contradicts the audit.

But in preliminary observations, Ray’s panel found that the audit, although not an exhaustive analysis, did provide useful information about perceived discrimination problems on the force.